Background    

Born in Norwich in 1853, William Freeman studied at the Kensington Art School, which later became the Royal College of Art.  A prize-winning artist, Freeman combined his passion for painting with running a shop selling artist’s materials in Surbiton, Surrey.
     Regularly exhibiting his watercolours with the Thames Valley Art Club, he became something of a local eccentric in Surbiton – famous for his long hair, unusual clothes and his favourite mode of transportation: an old tricycle. During the First World War Freeman served as a librarian to the Ministry of Agriculture and eventually retired to Hampton Wick where he lived with his wife and continued painting until his death in 1935.
     Influenced by his voracious appetite for Romantic Literature, especially Blake and Shelley, Freeman’s work is often inhabited by wraith-like figures alone and gazing out to sea or across dark, dramatic landscapes; there is a constant sense of searching for another world. His haunting watercolours are distinguished by fine technique, breathtaking originality and awesome imagination.

For more information please visit:
 WWW. ARTONLINElIMITED.COM
or telephone: +44 (0)20 8883 7719

Please click on the 'Gallery' button at the top of the page to view our collection of Freeman watercolours.